I recently bought a couple of CristalRecord ceiling fans that come with a remote control, but I’m having trouble integrating them with Home Assistant.
At first, I thought the remote used infrared (IR), but after testing with a Broadlink RM4C mini, it didn’t detect any signal — so it seems they actually use radio frequency (RF).
The box included a paper with a link to download an APK that allows control via a mobile app.
The setup process consists of turning on the wall switch and then, from the app, tapping the button to search for devices. If you do it within the first 3 seconds after powering on, the fan enters Bluetooth pairing mode and can be added successfully.
I also tried with another device that supports IR + RF, but it didn’t detect any signal either — so I suspect it uses a non-standard or higher RF frequency (maybe 433 MHz or something proprietary).
Questions:
Does anyone know if there’s a way to add these fans to Home Assistant?
Would it be possible to replace the internal RF module with something Zigbee or WiFi compatible (like ESPHome or Tuya)?
Since the fan connects to the phone via Bluetooth during setup, is there any way to integrate it into Home Assistant using Bluetooth directly?
Any ideas or experiences with this kind of fan would be greatly appreciated
I actually disassembled the fan to take some pictures of the light controller, but there isn’t much information printed on it. There’s a wire that looks like an antenna, so as you said, it seems to use 2.4GHz RF.
Three of the wires go to the LED light, and the other three are connected to the fan motor. I’m also attaching a screenshot from the app.
I understand that since the app connects via Bluetooth, there should be some way to capture or interact with the communication — maybe by sniffing the Bluetooth data or something similar.
Do you know what else I could check or try to confirm how the device communicates?
I also understand that I could buy a Zigbee-compatible light and fan controller or something similar, although I’d probably have to adapt the wiring connections.
If you need more details or photos, just let me know!
Foto of a black box really doesn’t help, good closeup image of the circuit board would be minimum…
Anyway, simple wire is rarely used as 2.4G antenna, so that hints back to 433 /315MHz remote.
The same lamp is also sold as wifi and no-wifi version, so maybe they just kept the same remote.
To sniff and reverse engineer the BLE protocol you need plenty of time… And to swap the controller is likely going to cost you more than the lamp, you need cww led driver and bldc motor driver.
So only viable option to my opinion is to replicate the remote signal or to attach to the remote receiver module inside. Or the remote control itself…
Hi — sorry about the poor photo of the box, T_T; I didn’t think the interior would be the interesting part. Instead, I’ll send photos of the remote in case they’re useful.
Anyway, I already tried a device meant to replicate IR and RF signals and it didn’t seem to detect anything, so I’m not sure about 433/315 MHz.
Specifically: I have an IR Controller Pro (Tuya) and a generic “replicator.” I also tried a Flipper Zero to see if it would pick up any signal, and none of them register anything when I press the remote.
Which RF device would you recommend to try to replicate/sniff the signal? Is it worth trying to capture BLE (if it actually uses BLE) or would it be more practical to open the lamp and identify the receiver/module/IC to tap into?
Maybe, as @ShadowFist suggests, would it be better to put an ESP32 in the remote?
Interestingly, I have another identical fan in a different room, and each remote only works with its own fan — they can’t be used interchangeably.
Yes, I have a “Monster” smart light bulb and they have they own app, but I connected to Tuya app. Don’t want to have extra app on my phone. Even Tuya devices can work locally with Tuya Local App , if I remember correctly
Questions:
